Melissa McCarthy to Star in ‘Margie Claus’ – and It Could Be Epic

Melissa McCarthy is swiftly becoming one of the hottest comic actors in Hollywood, and has made a name for herself in recent hits including Spy and Ghostbusters. Among various other projects that she’s involved in, it has now been confirmed that the American actress will play the lead role in Margie Claus, a Christmas movie with a twist: it doesn’t feature jolly old St. Nick as the lead. With the 46-year-old now associated with guaranteed laughs and entertainment, could this upcoming festive flick be set to rival the best in the genre?

The Christmas genre certainly won’t be an easy one to top. There have been some absolute classics over the years, including Home Alone, It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Story, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Elf, to name a few of the greatest. Jon Favreau’s Elf in 2003 set the bar pretty high in terms of comic Christmas outings, and McCarthy will have to compete with Will Ferrell’s hilarious Buddy the Elf character if her film is to top the tree.

What Margie Claus does have going for it is its potential for originality. First of all, it will be one of the only Christmas films ever that doesn’t have a male actor playing the lead role. McCarthy has shown that she has the ability to carry a film as the central protagonist, especially in Paul Feig’s Spy, which received a score of 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. Before that she made a name for herself in Bridesmaids, a film so iconic there has even been a slot machine based on the 2011 hit developed by Microgaming. The five-reel, 40-payline game is available to play on different online casinos and features a number of the other main actresses including Kristen Wiig and Rose Byrne. It is yet to be confirmed whether the likes of Wiig could appear alongside McCarthy again, but seeing as they have also collaborated in Ghostbusters, it is a possibility.

Another factor that could lead Margie Claus to stand out from the rest is that the film is introducing a totally new character, and the scriptwriters can go in virtually any direction they want. The storyline that has been teased so far involves Santa Claus going missing on Christmas Eve and Margie Claus having to put together an unlikely rescue team who set off on an expedition to find the sleigh-riding bringer of gifts. What could go wrong with such a mission?

The biggest selling factor of this film has to be McCarthy’s likeability. She’s a bubbly character who brings energy to all her roles, and people from all walks of life will find her relatable. Women respect her for not being the traditional glamour model-style pinup like many in the film industry, and the LGBT community also enjoys her appeal after she famously said that most of the people who dated her in the past were “probably gay.”

There is a long wait until the film is set to hit cinemas, however. At the moment it is in its embryonic stages, and was recently pitched to New Line Cinema by McCarthy and Ben Falcone. The production company quickly purchased the rights and is set to release it in late November of 2019.